Band: EfterklangWhere: Other Music Party at the French Legation MuseumWhat It Was Like: Seven people from Copenhagen playing ornate pop combining violin, trumpet and flute with glitchy electronics. Closer "Cutting Ice to Snow" started slow, quiet and choral before building into a gorgeous cacophony of yearning gang vocals and frantic tamborine playing. Verdict: Fans of Sigur Ros, Sufjan Stevens or Broken Social Scene would be wise to check this stuff out. Considering I'd never heard a single note before, I was definitely impressed.Random Note: According to Wikipedia, Efterklang is "the Danish word for rememberance and reverberation."

Band: Alela DianeWhere: Other Music Party at the French Legation MuseumWhat It Was Like: The French Legation Museum's green lawn was the perfect setting for Diane's quiet and alluring forest folk. Joined by her father on mandolin and guitar and a back-up singer, Diane shared several songs from the recently released To Be Still, including elegiac closer "My Brambles" and "White As Diamonds," which benefitted greatly from the tight harmonies of her bandmates.Verdict: I first caught Diane in a similarly woodsy setting behind Jovita's at SXSW 2006, and she's only gotten better since. Random Note: In a Snow White-esque moment, a chorus of chirping birds joined in on "Every Path"

Band: Camera ObscuraWhere: Other Music Party at the French Legation MuseumWhat It Was Like: With keyboardist Carey Lander feeling under the weather, the band attempted to soldier on without her, playing songs off the soon-to-be-released My Maudlin Career. Lead singer Tracyanne Campbell would have been a huge star in the days of Petula Clark; it's easy to imagine her band's exquisite Girl Group-inspired Brit-Pop blasting from the A.M. radio of a vintage 60s convertible on some forgotten highway strip.Verdict: Even sans-keyboards and female harmonies, the band's songs were lovely. Unfortunately, it is not the kind of music best heard in a steamy 90 degree tent that stinks of B.O. and tacos.Random Note: I decided to leave mid-set to hike back under I-35 and catch Dark Meat, a band perfectly suited to environments that stink of B.O. and tacos.

Band: Dark Meat Where: My Old Kentucky Blog/Aquarium Drunkard Party at Peckerhead'sWhat It Was Like: I got stuck outside waiting in line and only caught the last two songs, but the band's mix of blaring horns, whining violins and fist-pump worthy guitar riffage whipped the crowd into a frenzy, with one of the group's 10 members showering the room in confetti with the aid of a leaf blower.Verdict: As anyone who caught them last summer in North Texas (when they played a whopping four shows in two or three days) can attest, Dark Meat's Southern boogie noise rock is best experienced live and loud.Random Note: Though the band is from Athens, Georgia, violin player Nate DeYonker lives in Denton, where he's played with Raised By Tigers and others.

Band: MegafaunWhere: My Old Kentucky Blog/Aquarium Drunkard Party at Peckerhead'sWhat It Was Like: Three hairy Southerners playing rural prog on banjo, guitar and drums. The band showed off it's three parts harmonies on every song, but their instrumental interludes were often more interesting.Verdict: I'd like to check out their record, but the set itself was underwhelming save the closing song, during which the band insisted the entire audience clap along and learn a wordless, three-part vocal arrangement in sections.Random Note: Megafaun was formed by the remaining members of the now-defunct Raleigh, North Carolina band DeYarmond Edison after band member Justin Vernon left to record as Bon Iver.